A hypertext file is displayed on a computer as a page through software called a browser. A page comprises links that, when selected by a user, cause another page to be displayed (known as the linked page), cause another part of the presently displayed page to be shown, or else cause a computer program to execute. A hypertext file is written in a programming language such as Hypertext Markup Language (HTML).
A logical grouping of hypertext files is called a site. Sites may reside on different computers. A set of sites that are interconnected by links is called a web. A site on a first computer may be effectively linked to a site on a second computer by connecting the first and second computers through a network. An example of a set of sites residing on different computers interconnected by a network is the World Wide Web (WWW), which is a set of sites written in HTML on computers interconnected by the Internet. Each site on the WWW is known as a website.
A site resides on a computer known as a server, which is accessed through a network by a user utilizing a client computer. Pages at a site are viewed by the user through software called a browser, which resides on the user's client computer. Here, a client computer is a system with a microprocessor and means for storing data and/or software such as random access memory and/or a hard disk drive, and which is capable of communicating with a hypertext network. The client computer is capable of providing output for display to a user, for example through a video display. Such output may take the form of at least one of textual, graphic, animation, video, audio, or virtual object media. The client computer is also capable of accepting input from a user. Such input may be provided by means such as a keyboard, a mouse, a telephone touch pad, a television remote control, and so on.
A web can be used as a channel for disseminating commercial information, including advertisements, as well as effectuating electronic commerce. Electronic commerce here refers to the process of buying and selling on a web.
Advertising on a web may be static or dynamic. Static web advertising operates by displaying an advertisement image at a fixed location on a page displayed to a user. The advertisement image may be a link that, when selected by the user, displays a new page that conveys additional information about the product or service featured in the static advertisement. The advertisement image link generally disappears when selected, and is replaced on the screen by the linked page.
Dynamic web advertising operates by displaying a sequence of advertisements. Dynamic web advertising is implemented using proprietary, stand-alone advertiser software that must be downloaded to the user client and executed by the user. Stand-alone here means software that operates independently of any other application software. Like the static advertisement, the dynamic advertisement may also be a link, is displayed at a fixed location on a page, and generally disappears after it is selected and replaced by a linked page.
An example of a dynamic web advertising system is the Point Cast Network. FIG. 1 shows this known stand-alone system that is installed as an independent software package on the client computer. Information including news, weather and sports is transmitted to the PCN software on the client computer and is updated periodically. The user may view news stories by selecting the news button 11, the weather by selecting the weather button 12, and so on. Advertisements are shown in a corner of the screen, in the advertisement area 13.
Each advertisement 14 is a link. When the user selects an advertisement link, PCN launches a browser and loads and displays a page 21 (FIG. 2) at a predetermined address, known as a Universal Resource Locator (URL) 22. The browser replaces the advertisement area 13, so PCN no longer displays advertisements to the user. Alternatively, PCN may be configured to launch a separate stand-alone browser, such as the Netscape browser, when an advertisement link is selected. In this case, the stand-alone browser appears in front of and obscures the advertisements presented by PCN. However, the browser can be moved to another part of the screen, thus revealing the ongoing stream of advertisements from PCN.
Nonetheless, viewing both PCN and the page on the stand-alone browser in their entirety is practically impossible, and the user generally must choose whether to view the one or the other, but cannot typically view both.
The advertisements that appear on the PCN comprise graphic and animated media. The advertisements are downloaded from a server to a client computer and occasionally updated (along with the rest of the content on the PCN) when the user selects the update button 15 (FIG. 1). A set of advertisements are stored on the user's client computer and played in sequence in a loop. The sequence repeats with a duty cycle dependent upon the number of advertisements downloaded.
In another known advertising system called the Hypernet, advertisements are streamed to the user while permitting the user to continue to browse the Internet. When an advertisement is selected, a page is presented to the user.
For these known systems, each advertisement only appears for a short period of time, and then is replaced by the next advertisement in the sequence. The user has no control over the content or order of the advertisements, and cannot pause, skip, replay, or step through the advertisements at will. Nor can the user make a secure purchase directly using the PCN service. The same advertisements are sent to all users, regardless of user preferences.
Both static and dynamic advertisements are limited in that they only provide a one-way flow of information from the advertiser to the user. At best, these advertisements provide a telephone number that the user must call to purchase or learn more about the advertised product, or a link to a page with additional information from the advertiser. Additional information from the advertiser must be requested through the advertiser's page that is linked to the advertisement, or verbally over the telephone from an advertiser representative.
Another disadvantage of known advertising systems is that, when an advertisement is selected by a user, the advertising process is generally interrupted as the linked page is displayed to the user. In systems where the advertising process is not interrupted, it is difficult or impossible for the user to view both advertisements and the linked page in their entirety. Thus, other advertisers are essentially prevented from presenting their advertisements while the user is pursuing further information on another advertisement.
Furthermore, a linked page generally contains other enticing links, thus reducing the likelihood that the user will soon (if ever) return to the website on which the advertisements are displayed.
A superior system of advertising on a web would provide the user with the capability to interact with and control the presentation of advertisements; engage in electronic commerce without leaving the web; easily obtain additional information regarding a product or service featured in an advertisement without interrupting the display of further advertisements; and establish communications with a sales representative of the advertiser through the client computer without leaving the web.
These features would enable an advertiser to more effectively target a purchaser, sending advertisements that are responsive to the user's needs. They would also give the user access to extensive information about the advertised product or service, resulting in better, more informed buying decisions. Advertisers would be able to take advantage of the low cost of selling electronically, thus lowering their cost of sales and improving their profitability. Competition under these circumstances would result in lower prices and greater values for the purchaser.